Ambulances response times being questioned

Concerns over removal of rapid responder cars from rural areas

CONCERNS have been raised over ambulance times along with the use of first responders in the Staffordshire Moorlands.

It comes after West Midlands Ambulance Service removed Rapid Response Vehicles (RRV) from Leek, Cheadle and Biddulph.

The issue was raised at the Staffordshire Moorlands District Council’s health overview and scrutiny panel meeting.

Speaking at the meeting, Councillor Bill Cawley said: “The RRVS have been removed. Was this matter raised at the Staffordshire County Council health meeting, as councillors had concerns about the loss of the RRVS as it as an impact on the rural areas.”

In reply, Councillor Charlotte Atkins, who is also a county councillor, said the issue had been raised by her.

Councillor John Jones said: “A patient in Biddulph Moor suffered a cardiac arrest. They waited 40 minutes for an ambulance. This would not have happened if the RRV or first responders were on hand. Any evidence people have, should be passed on to the Health Secretary Matt Hancock as one incident is one too many. I urge people to gather evidence.”

Speaking to the Post & Times, Councillor Atkins said: “The withdrawal of the Rapid Response Vehicles has left some rural areas with long risky delays for treatment, waiting for ambulances.

“The needs of areas like the Moorlands are very different from urban areas and arrangements must be suited to the needs of the community, not a uniform policy which does not recognise the different challenges we face.

“Although a RRV cannot transport a patient to hospital, that is not always an issue as a high proportion of patients are never transferred to hospital.

“First responders in the Moorlands feel very let down by the ambulance service. There has been little training offered over the last few years and the training now offered does not allow first responders to develop more advanced skills. I was told of first responders not being called to incidents and, therefore, were unable to respond. Others were restricted to a four-mile radius which does not account for the demands of a first responder group operating in a large rural area. Many groups are now very depleted, which makes it difficult for them to carry on their vital work.”

However, West Midlands Ambulance Service defended removing the RRVS and said that response times had stayed the same or improved.

A spokesman said: “Data that compares the six months prior to the removal of response cars from the likes of Biddulph and the most recent six months shows that in the majority of cases response standards have stayed the same or improved for the most urgent calls.

“There is still a misconception that the cars responded to most of the cases in these areas, they didn’t. For example, in Cheadle the car only attended just over 2 per cent of cases in the town and surrounding area. Similarly, in Biddulph, the car did not respond to over 85 per cent of incidents.

“The number of cases being responded to by CFRS (community first responders) has dropped, as was expected. The trust was very clear last year it would only be dispatching CFRS to the most serious cases such as cardiac arrests, heart attacks and choking patients where every second counts. This is where CFRS can make the biggest difference to the survival of patients.

“CFRS continue to save lives on a daily basis in their local community, the reason CFR schemes were originally set up.

“The trust is continuing to move forward with its plans to expand the number of CFRS in the West Midlands. To date, over 400 people have applied to become a CFR in the region, of which 90 are from Staffordshire. We are grateful to those who have applied but further opportunities will be made available over the coming weeks and we would urge anyone interested to apply and undertake the training.

“Equally, we are continuing to expand the number of automated defibrillators and would encourage everyone to learn CPR.”